Systems and methods for providing customized financial advice

ABSTRACT

A system includes one or more memory devices storing instructions, and one or more processors configured to execute the instructions to perform steps of a method for providing customized financial advice. The system may receive transaction data for a transaction associated with a customer and satisfaction data associated with the transaction. Based on the received transaction data and satisfaction data, the system may update a financial state of the customer and a financial policy for determining one or more actions to take in order to maximize a cumulative reward associated with the customer. The system may determine and output a recommended action based on the updated financial policy and customer financial state.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No.62/506,860, filed 16 May 2017, the entire contents and substance ofwhich is hereby incorporated by reference.

FIELD OF INVENTION

The present disclosure relates to systems and methods for providingcustomized financial advice, and more particularly providing systems andmethods for determining improved financial behavior for a particularcustomer based on the observed satisfaction associated with a pluralityof transactions.

BACKGROUND

When making financial decisions, such as transferring money to a savingsaccount, making an investment, paying off credit card debt, orpurchasing an item or service, customers generally want to maximize thevalue they receive from the transactions they engage in. To improvefinancial decision-making and help align short-term financial habitswith long-term financial goals, customers often engage the services offinancial planners, investment advisors, or other such serviceproviders. While financial advice from such service providers can behelpful, it can be limited by being insufficiently tailored to anindividual customer and corresponding to a particular time frame. Forexample, financial advice for many customers, particularly those whocannot afford or choose not to pay for individualized advice, is oftengeneralized based on a rule of thumb (e.g., advising a customer to saveat least 10% of his or her paycheck without considering the customer'sfinancial profile). As a result, such generic advice may be moreapplicable to some customers than others, and may even bedisadvantageous to certain customers.

Even when the financial advice is directed to a group of customershaving financial situations that appear similar, differing values andfinancial priorities of those customers may necessitate different advicefor each. For example, a first person may highly value financialsecurity and thus may hold preparing for retirement as their toppriority, whereas a second person may highly value the experience oftraveling while they are young and thus may value spending money todaymore highly than saving money for tomorrow.

Further, individualized financial advice may still be limited even whenit is not cost prohibitive. For example, while a financial advisor mayattempt to obtain a more personalized understanding of a customer'sfinancial state and their goals, their advice may still be limitedbecause it is based on a high level snapshot of the customer's financesand stated goals and values. In viewing a high level snapshot of acustomer's finances, information may be lost that may otherwise becaptured by analyzing individual transactions as well as transactionsthat occur after the snapshot is taken. Further, a customer'sverbalization of their values may not be accurate when viewed incomparison to the customer's actual behavior. Accordingly, generatingfinancial advice based on a high level snapshot of a customer'sfinancial state paired with their expressed goals and values may produceadvice that is not truly tailored to that customer's situation andvalues at that point in time or in the future. Further, producinggeneric advice in association with a high level financial snapshot mayprovide little benefit in aiding a customer in making day-to-dayfinancial decisions.

Accordingly, there is a need for improved systems and methods to providecustomized financial advice based on transaction-level data thatprovides indications of the value received by the individual in relationto each transaction. Embodiments of the present disclosure are directedto this and other considerations.

SUMMARY

Disclosed embodiments provide systems and methods for providingcustomized financial advice.

Consistent with the disclosed embodiments, the system may include one ormore memory devices storing instructions, and one or more processorsconfigured to execute the instructions to perform steps of a method ofproviding customized financial advice. The system may execute theinstructions to receive environmental data representative of anenvironment comprising a plurality of financial states that include afirst financial state and a second financial state. The first financialstate may initially correspond with a customer financial stateassociated with a customer. The system may receive financial policy datarepresenting a financial policy for determining one or more actions froma plurality of actions to take in order to maximize a cumulative rewardassociated with a customer, where each of the plurality of actions isassociated with one or more financial decisions. The system may thenreceive first transaction data and first satisfaction data for a firsttransaction associated with the customer. Based on the first transactiondata, the system may update the customer financial state to correspondwith the second financial state of the plurality of financial states.Based on the first transaction data and the first satisfaction data, thesystem may update the financial policy. The system may then determine arecommended action out of the plurality of actions based on the updatedfinancial policy and the updated customer financial state and outputrecommendation data for display by a user device associated with thecustomer.

Consistent with the disclosed embodiments, methods for providingcustomized financial advice are also disclosed.

Further features of the disclosed design, and the advantages offeredthereby, are explained in greater detail hereinafter with reference tospecific embodiments illustrated in the accompanying drawings, whereinlike elements are indicated be like reference designators.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, which are notnecessarily drawn to scale, and which are incorporated into andconstitute a portion of this disclosure, illustrate variousimplementations and aspects of the disclosed technology and, togetherwith the description, serve to explain the principles of the disclosedtechnology. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a diagram of an exemplary system that may be used to providecustomized financial advice;

FIG. 2 is a component diagram of an exemplary financial policymanagement device; and

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of an exemplary system for providing customizedfinancial advice.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Some implementations of the disclosed technology will be described morefully with reference to the accompanying drawings. This disclosedtechnology may, however, be embodied in many different forms and shouldnot be construed as limited to the implementations set forth herein. Thecomponents described hereinafter as making up various elements of thedisclosed technology are intended to be illustrative and notrestrictive. Many suitable components that would perform the same orsimilar functions as components described herein are intended to beembraced within the scope of the disclosed electronic devices andmethods. Such other components not described herein may include, but arenot limited to, for example, components developed after development ofthe disclosed technology.

It is also to be understood that the mention of one or more method stepsdoes not preclude the presence of additional method steps or interveningmethod steps between those steps expressly identified. Similarly, it isalso to be understood that the mention of one or more components in adevice or system does not preclude the presence of additional componentsor intervening components between those components expressly identified.

The disclosed embodiments are directed to systems and methods forproviding customized financial advice. The system may include one ormore memory devices storing instructions, and one or more processorsconfigured to execute the instructions to perform steps of a method.Specifically, in some embodiments, the system may execute theinstructions to receive environmental data representative of anenvironment comprising a plurality of financial states that include afirst financial state and a second financial state. The first financialstate may initially correspond with a customer financial stateassociated with a customer. The system may receive financial policy datarepresenting a financial policy for determining one or more actions froma plurality of actions to take in order to maximize a cumulative rewardassociated with a customer, where each of the plurality of actions isassociated with one or more financial decisions. The system may thenreceive first transaction data and first satisfaction data for a firsttransaction associated with the customer. Based on the first transactiondata, the system may update the customer financial state to correspondwith the second financial state of the plurality of financial states.Based on the first transaction data and the first satisfaction data, thesystem may update the financial policy. The system may then determine arecommended action out of the plurality of actions based on the updatedfinancial policy and the updated customer financial state and outputrecommendation data for display by a user device associated with thecustomer.

In another embodiment, a method for providing customized financialadvice is disclosed. The method may include receiving environmental datarepresentative of an environment comprising a plurality of financialstates that include a first financial state and a second financialstate. The first financial state may initially correspond with acustomer financial state associated with a customer. The method mayfurther include receiving financial policy data representing a financialpolicy for determining one or more actions from a plurality of actionsto take in order to maximize a cumulative reward associated with acustomer, where each of the plurality of actions being associated withone or more financial decisions. The method may further includereceiving first transaction data and first satisfaction data for a firsttransaction associated with the customer. The method may includeupdating the customer financial state to correspond with the secondfinancial state based on the first transaction data. The may furtherinclude updating the financial policy based on the first transactiondata and the first satisfaction data. The method may include determininga recommended action out of the plurality of actions based on theupdated financial policy and the updated customer financial state andoutputting recommendation data for display by a user device associatedwith the customer.

In another embodiment a non-transitory computer-readable medium storinginstructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause asystem to receive environmental data representative of an environmentcomprising a plurality of financial states comprising a first financialstate and a second financial state, is disclosed. The first financialstate may initially correspond with a customer financial stateassociated with a customer. The system may receive financial policy datarepresenting a financial policy for determining one or more actions froma plurality of actions to take in order to maximize a cumulative rewardassociated with a customer, where each of the plurality of actions isassociated with one or more financial decisions. The system may thenreceive first transaction data and first satisfaction data for a firsttransaction associated with the customer. Based on the first transactiondata, the system may update the customer financial state to correspondwith the second financial state of the plurality of financial states.Based on the first transaction data and the first satisfaction data, thesystem may update the financial policy. The system may then determine arecommended action out of the plurality of actions based on the updatedfinancial policy and the updated customer financial state and outputrecommendation data for display by a user device associated with thecustomer.

Although the above embodiments are described with respect to systems, itis contemplated that embodiments with identical or substantially similarfeatures may alternatively be implemented as methods and/ornon-transitory computer-readable media.

Reference will now be made in detail to exemplary embodiments of thedisclosed technology, examples of which are illustrated in theaccompanying drawings and disclosed herein. Wherever convenient, thesame references numbers will be used throughout the drawings to refer tothe same or like parts.

FIG. 1 is a diagram of an exemplary system 100 that may be configured toperform one or more processes that may provide customized financialadvice. The components and arrangements shown in FIG. 1 are not intendedto limit the disclosed embodiments as the components used to implementthe disclosed processes and features may vary. As shown, system 100 mayinclude a user device 102, a network 106, and an organization 108including, for example, a web server 110, a call center server 112, atransaction server 114, a local network 116, a database 118, a financialpolicy management (FPM) device 120, and a financial state management(FSM) device 122.

In some embodiments, a customer may operate user device 102. User device102 can include one or more of a mobile device, smart phone, generalpurpose computer, tablet computer, laptop computer, telephone, PSTNlandline, smart wearable device, voice command device, other mobilecomputing device, or any other device capable of communicating withnetwork 106 and ultimately communicating with one or more components oforganization 108. In some embodiments, a user device may include orincorporate electronic communication devices for hearing or visionimpaired users. User device 102 may belong to or be provided by acustomer, or may be borrowed, rented, or shared. Customers may includeindividuals such as, for example, subscribers, clients, prospectiveclients, or customers of an entity associated with organization 108,such as individuals who have obtained, will obtain, or may obtain aproduct, service, or consultation from an entity associated withorganization 108. According to some embodiments, user device 102 mayinclude an environmental sensor for obtaining audio or visual data, suchas a microphone and/or digital camera, a geographic location sensor fordetermining the location of the device, an input/output device such as atransceiver for sending and receiving data, a display for displayingdigital images, one or more processors including a sentiment depictionprocessor, and a memory in communication with the one or moreprocessors.

Network 106 may be of any suitable type, including individualconnections via the internet such as cellular or WiFi networks. In someembodiments, network 106 may connect terminals, services, and mobiledevices using direct connections such as radio-frequency identification(RFID), near-field communication (NFC), Bluetooth™, low-energyBluetooth™ (BLE), WiFi™, ZigBee™, ambient backscatter communications(ABC) protocols, USB, WAN, or LAN. Because the information transmittedmay be personal or confidential, security concerns may dictate one ormore of these types of connections be encrypted or otherwise secured. Insome embodiments, however, the information being transmitted may be lesspersonal, and therefore the network connections may be selected forconvenience over security.

Network 106 may comprise any type of computer networking arrangementused to exchange data. For example, network 106 may be the Internet, aprivate data network, virtual private network using a public network,and/or other suitable connection(s) that enables components in systemenvironment 100 to send and receive information between the componentsof system 100. Network 106 may also include a public switched telephonenetwork (“PSTN”) and/or a wireless network.

Organization 108 may be associated with an entity such as a business,corporation, individual, partnership, or any other entity that providesone or more of goods, services, and consultations to individuals such ascustomers.

Organization 108 may include one or more servers, devices, and computersystems for performing one or more functions associated with productsand/or services that organization 108 provides. Such servers, devices,and computer systems may include, for example, web server 110, callcenter server 112, transaction server 114, FPM device 120, and FSMdevice 122, as well as any other computer systems necessary toaccomplish tasks associated with organization 108 or the needs ofcustomers (which may be customers of the entity associated withorganization 108).

Web server 110 may include a computer system configured to generate andprovide one or more websites accessible to customers, as well as anyother individuals involved in organization 108's normal operations. Webserver 110 may include a computer system configured to receivecommunications from a user device 102 via for example, a mobileapplication, a chat program, an instant messaging program, avoice-to-text program, an SMS message, email, or any other type orformat of written or electronic communication. Web server 110 may haveone or more processors 132 and one or more web server databases 134,which may be any suitable repository of website data. Information storedin web server 110 may be accessed (e.g., retrieved, updated, and addedto) via local network 116 and/or network 106 by one or more devices(e.g., FPM device 120) of system 100. According to some embodiments, webserver 110 may receive satisfaction data such as, for example, surveysor reviews filled out on websites, responses to customer servicerepresentatives or chatbots in web-enabled chat applications, or userinputs received via a mobile application on a user device 102.

Call center server 112 may include a computer system configured toreceive, process, and route telephone calls and other electroniccommunications with a customer operating user device 102. Call centerserver 112 may have one or more processors 142 and one or more callcenter databases 144, which may be any suitable repository of callcenter data. Information stored in call center server 112 may beaccessed (e.g., retrieved, updated, and added to) via local network 116and/or network 106 by one or more devices (e.g., FPM device 120) ofsystem 100. In some embodiments, call center server processor 142 may beused to implement an interactive voice response (IVR) system thatinteracts with the customer over the phone. In some embodiments, callcenter server may receive satisfaction data such as recorded responsesto survey questions asked over the phone and voice recordings that maybe used to determine the emotional state of a customer by analyzingaspects of the recording, such as the customer's tone, pitch, rate ofspeech, etc.

Transaction server 114 may include a computer system configured toprocess one or more transactions involving an account associated with acustomer, or a request received from customers. In some embodiments,transactions can include, for example, a product/service purchase,product/service return, financial transfer, financial deposit, financialwithdrawal, financial credit, financial debit, dispute request, warrantycoverage request, and any other type of transaction associated with theproducts and/or services that an entity associated with organization 108provides to individuals such as customers. Transaction server 114 mayhave one or more processors 152 and one or more transaction serverdatabases 154, which may be any suitable repository of transaction data.Information stored in transaction server 114 may be accessed (e.g.,retrieved, updated, and added to) via local network 116 and/or network106 by one or more devices (e.g., FPM device 120) of system 100.

In some embodiments, transaction server 114 tracks and stores event dataregarding interactions between a third party, such as third party server126, with organization 108, on behalf of the individual. For example,transaction server 114 may track third party interactions such aspurchase requests, refund requests, warranty claims, account withdrawalsand deposits, and any other type of interaction that third party server126 may conduct with organization 108 on behalf of an individual such ascustomer.

Local network 116 may comprise any type of computer networkingarrangement used to exchange data in a localized area, such as WiFi,Bluetooth™ Ethernet, and other suitable network connections that enablecomponents of organization 108 to interact with one another and toconnect to network 106 for interacting with components in systemenvironment 100. In some embodiments, local network 116 may comprise aninterface for communicating with or linking to network 106. In otherembodiments, components of organization 208 may communicate via network106, without a separate local network 116.

According to some embodiments, database 118 may be a database associatedwith organization 108 and/or its related entity that may store a varietyof information relating to customers, transactions, satisfaction data,financial state data, financial policy data, and business operations.Database 118 may also serve as a back-up storage device and may containdata and information that is also stored on, for example, localdatabases associated with web server 110, call center server 112,transaction server 114, FPM device 120, and FSM device 122. Database 118may be accessed by other devices (e.g., FPM device 120) and may be usedto store records of every interaction, communication, and/or transactiona particular customer has had with organization 108 and/or its relatedentity.

FPM device 120 may include a computer system configured to store,execute, and update financial policy data that represents a financialpolicy. According to some embodiments, a financial policy may be a setof rules that may be applied to select or determine an action from aplurality of actions in order to maximize a cumulative reward associatedwith a customer. According to some embodiments, the financial policy mayapply rules to a set of actions to determine an estimated rewardassociated with each action, and then may prioritize the recommendationof each action based on the expected reward in order to maximize thereward. For example, a customer may have the option to buy acheeseburger or a slice of pizza for lunch, and the policy may determinethat the expected reward for the customer is higher if the customer buysthe cheeseburger, and therefore may recommend buying the cheeseburgerover the pizza.

According to some embodiments, the FPM device 120 may revise thefinancial policy over time using reinforcement learning techniques. Insome embodiments, such reinforcement learning techniques may include,but are not limited to, Q-learning, policy gradients, and actor-criticmethods. According to some embodiments, the financial policy mayiteratively analyze transaction data associated with a plurality oftransactions in combination with satisfaction data associated with theplurality of transactions to learn which types of transactions yield thegreatest benefit for the customer over time. According to someembodiments, the financial policy may also take into account thefinancial state of the customer over time. In some embodiments, therules of the financial policy and expected reward of a particular actionmay change based on the current financial state of the customer. Forexample, a cheeseburger may cost a dollar less than a pizza, but acustomer may enjoy eating pizza more than a cheeseburger, presentingconflicting interests. However, based on the customer's financial statethe financial policy may estimate a different reward for each purchasein each scenario such that, for example, if the customer only has $100in their savings account, the customer my derive more value from savingthe dollar from buying the cheeseburger than from the increased valuethe customer receives from enjoying the pizza more than the cheeseburgerand thus the expected reward associated with buying the cheeseburger maybe higher than the expected reward associated with buying the pizza inthis case. However, if the customer has $100,000 in savings, theincremental value gained from saving a dollar may be less than the valuethe customer derives from the enjoyment of eating the pizza, and thusthe expected reward associated with buying the pizza may be higher thanbuying the cheeseburger. Thus, according to some embodiments, based on acustomer's individual values, goals, and financial circumstances, FPMdevice 120 may help the customer maximize the outcomes of dailyfinancial decisions by maintaining an ever-evolving financial policythat can yield recommendations to the customer about what financialaction to take next. In some embodiments, FPM device 120 can determinean optimal path to determine what specific actions (e.g., financialdecisions) a customer should take to achieve a particular goal bysetting a financial policy to maximize the intended goal (e.g., tomaximize savings over a period of time) and train a reinforcementlearning algorithm to optimize a set of choices and behaviors that havebeen observed by the system through past transactions and other data toyield the optimal set of actions that a customer should take to real thespecified goal.

Although the previous example compares a financial gain to enjoyment ofa food item, it should be understood that a customer's satisfaction withor value derived from a transaction can be gauged or estimated using avariety of different quantitative and qualitative measures such as, forexample but not limited to, improvements to financial situation (e.g.,increased savings, increased cash flow, decreased debt, decreasedexpenses, improved credit scores, and any associated/resulting increasesin financial capability etc.), enjoyment of an experience, impact onhealth, increase in knowledge and learning, increase in capabilities,increase in happiness, or increase in the happiness of others. Accordingto some embodiments, customer satisfaction related to a customer'sfinancial situation may be measured using dollars (or any othercurrency), customer satisfaction related to a customer's health may bequantified by measures of the customer's weight, strength, speed,stamina, and the like, and measures of a customer's satisfaction relatedto enjoyment may be quantified using a rating generated by the customer.

As described above, according to some embodiments, FPS device 120 mayupdate the financial policy in response to receiving satisfaction dataassociated with a transaction in order to determine the level of rewardthe customer received from a particular transaction. Satisfaction datamay be collected in various forms, such as but not limited to, writtenor oral survey responses, costumer ratings or reviews of products orservices via a mobile application or website, comments made on socialmedia associated with a transaction or product, and emotional statesrecognized by analysis of a customer's facial expression, body language,voice/audio analysis, or satisfaction inferred from the retention orincreased usage of a product or service. In some embodiments, FPS device120 may receive satisfaction data from another device, such as forexample, user device 102, web server 110, call center server 112,transaction server 114, and third party server 126. For example, FPSdevice 120 may receive satisfaction data from a call center server 112that represents audio data obtained from a recorded phone call with acustomer in relation to a transaction, where the audio data may beanalyzed to determine a user's satisfaction with the transaction byanalyzing aspects of the customer's speech (such as tone, pitch, speed,etc.). In some embodiments, web server 110 or third party server 126 mayhave customer data such as social media content including writtenstatements, photos, and videos of a customer that may be analyzed todetermine the customer's satisfaction with a transaction. For example, acustomer may post a video on a social media site making statements abouthow much the customer enjoyed going to a particular event or howdisappointed the customer was in a particular restaurant. FPS device 120may collect this sentiment data and use it to determine an estimation ofthe reward obtained by a customer in association with a particulartransaction. Although the previous description relates to collectingsentiment data associated with the customer making the purchasingdecision, it should be understood that sentiment data may also becollected from others associated with the customer. For example, if aparent purchases dinner for the entire family, FPS device 120 maycollect sentiment data associated with all of the family members underthe presumption that the parent will be happier if their family ishappy. In some embodiments, the FPS device 120 may collect sentimentdata from a recipient of a gift purchased by a customer so that overtime the policy may learn what gifts are more likely to please generalor particular recipients in order to maximize the customer's spending ongifts.

FSM device 122 may include a computer system configured to store,manage, and update environmental data representative of an environmentcomprising a plurality of financial states. According to someembodiments, a financial state may represent a set of circumstances,parameters, and/or attributes associated with a particular individual orentity. For example, a financial state may represent a snapshot of aparticular customer's financial status and may include, for example butnot limited to, account balances, assets, loans and other forms ofcredit, savings goals, age, income, zip code, credit score, cash flow,expenses, or any other data, or changes thereof, that may provide aninsight into the customer's financial situation. According to someembodiments, financial state may also include a variety of other typesof information that may be considered in providing financial advice thatis specific to a particular individual, such as, for example, thecustomer's education, health, housing, or location. In some embodiments,the environment may be considered to be a plurality of possiblefinancial states. According to some embodiments, the environment mayinclude an unlimited or infinite number of possible financial states,based on the number of parameters used to constitute a financial state.In some embodiments, FSM device 122 may store and update the environmentby, for example, updating the plurality of possible financial stateswith changes in information. For example, if interest rates change, FSMdevice 122 may update the applicable interest rates in the pertinentfinancial states of the plurality of financial states.

According to some embodiments, FSM device 122 may manage and update thecurrent financial state associated with one or more customers. Forexample, a particular customer may begin with a first financial statethat includes, for example, initial bank account and credit cardbalances, assets, loans, financial goals, and the like. According tosome embodiments, FSM device 122 may update the financial state of thecustomer from the first financial state to a second financial state inresponse to receiving transaction data for a transaction associated withthe customer. For example, if the customer purchases a certificate ofdeposit (CD), FSM device 122 may update the customer financial state toreflect a reduction in the savings account of the customer and theaddition of, for example, a 5 year CD that yields 4% interest. Accordingto some embodiments, FSM device 122 may receive transaction data fromweb server 110, call center server 112, transaction server 114, or thirdparty server 126. For example, if a customer calls into call centerserver 112 and makes a credit card payment over the phone, call centerserver 112 may transmit the details of that transaction to FSM device122. In some embodiments, FSM device 122 may be enabled to accessvarious customer accounts that are associated with organization 108 andan associated entity that may have data stored in, for example database118. In some embodiments, FSM device 122 may store login in credentialssuch as usernames, account numbers, and passwords to access a customer'saccount information for accounts that are not associated withorganization 108 but may otherwise be accessed on a remote server vianetwork 106. According to some embodiments, FSM device 122 maycontinuously or intermittently access one or more customer accounts inorder to determine if any update to the customer's financial state maybe required.

Although the preceding description describes various functions of webserver 110, call center server 112, transaction server 114, database118, FPM device 120, and FSM device 122, in some embodiments, some orall of these functions may be carried out by a single computing device.

For ease of discussion, embodiments may be described in connection withthe provision of customized financial advice to a customer. It is to beunderstood, however, that disclosed embodiments are not limited toproviding customized advice to individuals, but may also be applied toproviding customized financial advice to businesses and otherorganizations. Further, steps or processes disclosed herein are notlimited to being performed in the order described, but may be performedin any order, and some steps may be omitted, consistent with thedisclosed embodiments.

The features and other aspects and principles of the disclosedembodiments may be implemented in various environments. Suchenvironments and related applications may be specifically constructedfor performing the various processes and operations of the disclosedembodiments or they may include a general purpose computer or computingplatform selectively activated or reconfigured by program code toprovide the necessary functionality. Further, the processes disclosedherein may be implemented by a suitable combination of hardware,software, and/or firmware. For example, the disclosed embodiments mayimplement general purpose machines configured to execute softwareprograms that perform processes consistent with the disclosedembodiments. Alternatively, the disclosed embodiments may implement aspecialized apparatus or system configured to execute software programsthat perform processes consistent with the disclosed embodiments.Furthermore, although some disclosed embodiments may be implemented bygeneral purpose machines as computer processing instructions, all or aportion of the functionality of the disclosed embodiments may beimplemented instead in dedicated electronics hardware.

The disclosed embodiments also relate to tangible and non-transitorycomputer readable media that include program instructions or programcode that, when executed by one or more processors, perform one or morecomputer-implemented operations. The program instructions or programcode may include specially designed and constructed instructions orcode, and/or instructions and code well-known and available to thosehaving ordinary skill in the computer software arts. For example, thedisclosed embodiments may execute high level and/or low level softwareinstructions, such as machine code (e.g., such as that produced by acompiler) and/or high level code that can be executed by a processorusing an interpreter.

An exemplary embodiment of FPM device 120 is shown in more detail inFIG. 2. Web server 110, call center server 112, transaction server 114,FSM device 122, third party server 126 and/or user device 102 may have asimilar structure and may include many components that are similar to oreven have the same capabilities as those described with respect to FPMdevice 120. As shown, FPM device 120 may include a processor 210, aninput/output (“I/O”) device 220, a memory 230 containing an operatingsystem (“OS”) 240 and a program 250. For example, FPM device 120 may bea single device or server or may be configured as a distributed computersystem including multiple servers, devices, or computers thatinteroperate to perform one or more of the processes and functionalitiesassociated with the disclosed embodiments. In some embodiments, FPMdevice 120 may further include a peripheral interface, a transceiver, amobile network interface in communication with the processor 210, a busconfigured to facilitate communication between the various components ofthe prouder device 110, and a power source configured to power one ormore components of the web server 110.

A peripheral interface may include hardware, firmware and/or softwarethat enables communication with various peripheral devices, such asmedia drives (e.g., magnetic disk, solid state, or optical disk drives),other processing devices, or any other input source used in connectionwith the instant techniques. In some embodiments, a peripheral interfacemay include a serial port, a parallel port, a general purpose input andoutput (GPIO) port, a game port, a universal serial bus (USB), amicro-USB port, a high definition multimedia (HDMI) port, a video port,an audio port, a Bluetooth™ port, a near-field communication (NFC) port,another like communication interface, or any combination thereof.

In some embodiments, a transceiver may be configured to communicate withcompatible devices and ID tags when they are within a predeterminedrange. A transceiver may be compatible with one or more of:radio-frequency identification (RFID), near-field communication (NFC),Bluetooth™, low-energy Bluetooth™ (BLE), WiFi™, ZigBee™, ambientbackscatter communications (ABC) protocols or similar technologies.

A mobile network interface may provide access to a cellular network, theInternet, a local area network, or another wide-area network. In someembodiments, a mobile network interface may include hardware, firmware,and/or software that allows the processor(s) 210 to communicate withother devices via wired or wireless networks, whether local or widearea, private or public, as known in the art. A power source may beconfigured to provide an appropriate alternating current (AC) or directcurrent (DC) to power components.

Processor 210 may include one or more of a microprocessor,microcontroller, digital signal processor, co-processor or the like orcombinations thereof capable of executing stored instructions andoperating upon stored data. Memory 230 may include, in someimplementations, one or more suitable types of memory (e.g. such asvolatile or non-volatile memory, random access memory (RAM), read onlymemory (ROM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), erasableprogrammable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasableprogrammable read-only memory (EEPROM), magnetic disks, optical disks,floppy disks, hard disks, removable cartridges, flash memory, aredundant array of independent disks (RAID), and the like), for storingfiles including an operating system, application programs (including,for example, a web browser application, a widget or gadget engine, andor other applications, as necessary), executable instructions and data.In one embodiment, the processing techniques described herein areimplemented as a combination of executable instructions and data withinthe memory 230.

Processor 210 may be one or more known processing devices, such as amicroprocessor from the Pentium™ family manufactured by Intel™ or theTurion™ family manufactured by AMD™. Processor 210 may constitute asingle core or multiple core processor that executes parallel processessimultaneously. For example, processor 210 may be a single coreprocessor that is configured with virtual processing technologies. Incertain embodiments, processor 210 may use logical processors tosimultaneously execute and control multiple processes. Processor 210 mayimplement virtual machine technologies, or other similar knowntechnologies to provide the ability to execute, control, run,manipulate, store, etc. multiple software processes, applications,programs, etc. One of ordinary skill in the art would understand thatother types of processor arrangements could be implemented that providefor the capabilities disclosed herein.

FPM device 120 may include one or more storage devices configured tostore information used by processor 210 (or other components) to performcertain functions related to the disclosed embodiments. In someembodiments, FPM device 120 may include memory 230 that includesinstructions to enable processor 210 to execute one or moreapplications, such as server applications, network communicationprocesses, and any other type of application or software known to beavailable on computer systems. Alternatively, the instructions,application programs, etc. may be stored in an external storage oravailable from a memory over a network. The one or more storage devicesmay be a volatile or non-volatile, magnetic, semiconductor, tape,optical, removable, non-removable, or other type of storage device ortangible computer-readable medium.

In one embodiment, FPM device 120 may include memory 230 that includesinstructions that, when executed by processor 210, perform one or moreprocesses consistent with the functionalities disclosed herein. Methods,systems, and articles of manufacture consistent with disclosedembodiments are not limited to separate programs or computers configuredto perform dedicated tasks. For example, FPM device 120 may includememory 230 that may include one or more programs 250 to perform one ormore functions of the disclosed embodiments. Moreover, processor 210 mayexecute one or more programs 250 located remotely from system 100. Forexample, system 100 may access one or more remote programs 250, that,when executed, perform functions related to disclosed embodiments. Insome embodiments, FPM device 120 may include a financial policy program250 that is a rules-based program for estimating the reward receivedfrom various actions and outputting recommendations for maximizing acustomer's financial decisions as described below.

Memory 230 may include one or more memory devices that store data andinstructions used to perform one or more features of the disclosedembodiments. Memory 230 may also include any combination of one or moredatabases controlled by memory controller devices (e.g., server(s),etc.) or software, such as document management systems, Microsoft™ SQLdatabases, SharePoint™ databases, Oracle™ databases, Sybase™ databases,or other relational or non-relational databases. Memory 230 may includesoftware components that, when executed by processor 210, perform one ormore processes consistent with the disclosed embodiments. In someembodiments, memory 230 may include a database 260 for storing relateddata to enable FPM device 120 to perform one or more of the processesand functionalities associated with the disclosed embodiments.

FPM device 120 may also be communicatively connected to one or morememory devices (e.g., databases) locally or through a network. Theremote memory devices may be configured to store information and may beaccessed and/or managed by FPM device 120. By way of example, the remotememory devices may be document management systems, Microsoft™ SQLdatabase, SharePoint™ databases, Oracle™ databases, Sybase™ databases,or other relational or non-relational databases. Systems and methodsconsistent with disclosed embodiments, however, are not limited toseparate databases or even to the use of a database.

FPM device 120 may also include one or more I/O devices 220 that maycomprise one or more interfaces for receiving signals or input fromdevices and providing signals or output to one or more devices thatallow data to be received and/or transmitted by web server 110. Forexample, web server 110 may include interface components, which mayprovide interfaces to one or more input devices, such as one or morekeyboards, mouse devices, touch screens, track pads, trackballs, scrollwheels, digital cameras, microphones, sensors, and the like, that enableweb server 110 to receive data from one or more users (such as, forexample, via user device 102).

In exemplary embodiments of the disclosed technology, FPM device 120 mayinclude any number of hardware and/or software applications that areexecuted to facilitate any of the operations. The one or more I/Ointerfaces may be utilized to receive or collect data and/or userinstructions from a wide variety of input devices. Received data may beprocessed by one or more computer processors as desired in variousimplementations of the disclosed technology and/or stored in one or morememory devices.

While web server 110, call center server 112, transaction server 114,FPM device 120, and FSM device 122 have been described as one form forimplementing the techniques described herein, those having ordinaryskill in the art will appreciate that other, functionally equivalenttechniques may be employed. For example, as known in the art, some orall of the functionality implemented via executable instructions mayalso be implemented using firmware and/or hardware devices such asapplication specific integrated circuits (ASICs), programmable logicarrays, state machines, etc. Furthermore, other implementations of theweb server 110, call center server 112, transaction server 114, FPMdevice 120, and FSM device 122 may include a greater or lesser number ofcomponents than those illustrated.

FIG. 3 shows a flowchart of a method 300 for providing customizedfinancial advice. Method 300 may be performed by some or all of webserver 110, call center server 112, transaction server 114, database118, FPM device 120, and FSM device 122.

In block 310, the system may receive (e.g., at FSM device 122)environmental data representative of an environment comprising aplurality of financial states. According to some embodiments, theplurality of financial states may comprise at least a first financialstate and a second financial state, and the first financial state mayinitially correspond with a customer financial state associated with acustomer. Accordingly, in some embodiments, the first financial statemay represent a current snapshot of the customer's financialcircumstances that may include for example, account balances, assets,loans and other forms of credit, savings goals, age, income, zip code,credit score, cash flow, expenses, or any other data, or changesthereof, that may provide an insight into the customer's financialsituation. In some embodiments that second financial state may representa potential future customer financial state that represents thecustomer's financial circumstances following the execution of aparticular transaction or action taken by the customer.

In block 320, the system may receive (e.g., at FPM device 120) financialpolicy data representing a financial policy. According to someembodiments, a financial policy may be used to determine one or moreactions from a plurality of actions to take in order to maximize acumulative reward associated with a customer. In some embodiments, eachof the plurality of actions may be associated with one or more financialdecisions. For example, a first action may be to buy a cheeseburger, asecond action may be to buy a pizza, and a third action may be to buy asalad. According to some embodiments, FPM device 120 may estimate anexpected reward with each action based on the financial policy, whichmay include a set of rules to calculate the expected reward for eachaction. In some embodiments, a reward may be represented as a number,such that for example, the FPM device 120 may determine that buying acheeseburger has an expected reward of zero, buying a pizza has anexpected reward of two, and buying a salad has an expected reward ofnegative one. According to some embodiments, because the financialpolicy is designed to maximize the reward, in the previous example thefinancial policy would prioritize buying the pizza over thecheeseburger, and would prioritize buying the salad last. The FPM device120 may determine the expected reward for each action based on thefinancial policy rules, which may have been developed over time byobserving the satisfaction the customer has received in the past from aplurality of previous transactions.

In block 330, the system may receive (e.g., at FSM device 122) firsttransaction data for a first transaction associated with the customer.For example, if the customer purchases a cheeseburger, FSM device 122may receive transaction data that may include, for example, the price ofthe item, the location of the purchase, the time and day of thepurchase, the account or credit card used to make the purchase, anydiscounts or coupons used in association with the purchase, and anyother such data that may be associated with the transaction. Transactiondata may be received from, for example, transaction server 114, thirdparty server 126, or user device 102.

In block 340, the system may receive (e.g., at FPM device 120)satisfaction data for the first transaction. For example, FPM device 120may receive a review or survey response associated with the purchase ofthe cheeseburger submitted to web server 110 or orally to call centerserver 112, a rating of the cheeseburger input by a user via a mobileapplication on a user device 102, the magnitude of a tip left inassociation with the purchase of the cheeseburger from transactionserver 114, or a comment on social media stored on a third party server126 that indicates a level of satisfaction with the purchasedcheeseburger. As described above, satisfaction data received by FPMdevice 120 in association with a transaction may provide an indicationof the value, happiness, or enjoyment a customer derived from aparticular transaction or from a plurality of transactions. For example,a measure of happiness can be derived from whether a customer increasesusage of a good or service by examining the customer's transactions.

In block 350, the system (e.g., via FSM device 122) may update thecustomer financial state to correspond with the second financial stateof the plurality of financial states based on the first transactiondata. For example, if the initial customer financial state indicatedthat the customer had $100 in their bank account and the customerexecuted a transaction involving the expense of $5 on a cheeseburger,FSM device 122 may update the customer financial state to correspond tothe second financial state, which is a financial state in which thecustomer has $95 in their bank account and a cheeseburger.

In block 360, the system (e.g., via FPM device 120) may update thefinancial policy based on the first transaction data and the firstsatisfaction data. For example, after receiving satisfaction dataindicating that the customer enjoyed the cheeseburger, the FPM device120 may determine that in this instance there was a positive rewardassociated with the purchase of the cheeseburger and may thereforeadjust the financial policy to favor the purchase of cheeseburgers (vs.other options) in the future. The FPM device 120 may determine themagnitude of the reward obtained from the transaction by, for example,using an adaptive function. Accordingly, in some embodiments, the FPMdevice 120 may update the financial policy by determining a rewardassociated with a transaction based on the satisfaction data anddetermining whether the reward increases or decreases the cumulativereward associated with the customer. The FPM device may determine thereward associated with the transaction by applying a set of rulesassociated with the financial policy to the updated financial state andthe satisfaction data associated with the transaction. In someembodiments, a cumulative reward may represent one or more of a savingsgoal, a passive income goal, a debt reduction goal, or a happiness goal.In some embodiments, a cumulative reward may represent the expected sumof all future rewards, which may include all types of rewards.Accordingly, in some embodiments, measures of different reward types(e.g., financial rewards vs. health rewards) may be translated to acommon set of units so that they may be summed. In block 370, the system(e.g., via FPM device 120) may determine a recommended action out of theplurality of actions based on the updated financial policy and theupdated customer financial state. In some embodiments, the FPM device120 may determine a recommended action in response to a prompt from, forexample, user device 102. For example, a user may use a mobileapplication on user device 102 to generate a query to FPM device 120 toask, for example, “what should I buy for lunch today?” In someembodiments, FPM device 120 may automatically generate a recommendationbased on, for example, the location of the customer, the date, the timeof date, device type, past behavior, location of the transaction,anticipated rewards, or other factors that may define the customerfinancial state.

In block 380, the system (e.g., via FPM device 120) may outputrecommendation data based on the recommended action for display by auser device 102 associated with the customer. For example, FPM device120 may generate a notification to user device 102 to present therecommended action to the user. In some embodiments, outputting therecommendation may be an optional step, as the FPM device 120 maycontinually update, test, and refine the financial policy beforeoutputting a recommendation to for display to a user. In someembodiments, FPM device 120 may determine that refraining fromoutputting a recommendation may lead to the greatest future cumulativereward and may therefore refrain from outputting a recommendation untilthat determination changes. According to some embodiments, FPM device120 may output recommendations in accordance with a predeterminedschedule. For example, FPM device 120 may output recommendations once aweek while continuing to refine the financial policy for the remainderof the week. In some embodiments, FPM device 120 may output arecommendation if it determines that the confidence level of therecommendation exceeds a predetermined threshold. In some embodiments,FPM device 120 may refrain from outputting a recommendation if there isno recommendation to output or if the recommendation is to take noaction.

As used in this application, the terms “component,” “module,” “system,”“server,” “processor,” “memory,” and the like are intended to includeone or more computer-related units, such as but not limited to hardware,firmware, a combination of hardware and software, software, or softwarein execution. For example, a component may be, but is not limited tobeing, a process running on a processor, an object, an executable, athread of execution, a program, and/or a computer. By way ofillustration, both an application running on a computing device and thecomputing device can be a component. One or more components can residewithin a process and/or thread of execution and a component may belocalized on one computer and/or distributed between two or morecomputers. In addition, these components can execute from variouscomputer readable media having various data structures stored thereon.The components may communicate by way of local and/or remote processessuch as in accordance with a signal having one or more data packets,such as data from one component interacting with another component in alocal system, distributed system, and/or across a network such as theInternet with other systems by way of the signal.

Certain embodiments and implementations of the disclosed technology aredescribed above with reference to block and flow diagrams of systems andmethods and/or computer program products according to exampleembodiments or implementations of the disclosed technology. It will beunderstood that one or more blocks of the block diagrams and flowdiagrams, and combinations of blocks in the block diagrams and flowdiagrams, respectively, can be implemented by computer-executableprogram instructions Likewise, some blocks of the block diagrams andflow diagrams may not necessarily need to be performed in the orderpresented, may be repeated, or may not necessarily need to be performedat all, according to some embodiments or implementations of thedisclosed technology.

These computer-executable program instructions may be loaded onto ageneral-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a processor, orother programmable data processing apparatus to produce a particularmachine, such that the instructions that execute on the computer,processor, or other programmable data processing apparatus create meansfor implementing one or more functions specified in the flow diagramblock or blocks. These computer program instructions may also be storedin a computer-readable memory that can direct a computer or otherprogrammable data processing apparatus to function in a particularmanner, such that the instructions stored in the computer-readablememory produce an article of manufacture including instruction meansthat implement one or more functions specified in the flow diagram blockor blocks.

As an example, embodiments or implementations of the disclosedtechnology may provide for a computer program product, including acomputer-usable medium having a computer-readable program code orprogram instructions embodied therein, said computer-readable programcode adapted to be executed to implement one or more functions specifiedin the flow diagram block or blocks. Likewise, the computer programinstructions may be loaded onto a computer or other programmable dataprocessing apparatus to cause a series of operational elements or stepsto be performed on the computer or other programmable apparatus toproduce a computer-implemented process such that the instructions thatexecute on the computer or other programmable apparatus provide elementsor steps for implementing the functions specified in the flow diagramblock or blocks.

Accordingly, blocks of the block diagrams and flow diagrams supportcombinations of means for performing the specified functions,combinations of elements or steps for performing the specifiedfunctions, and program instruction means for performing the specifiedfunctions. It will also be understood that each block of the blockdiagrams and flow diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the blockdiagrams and flow diagrams, can be implemented by special-purpose,hardware-based computer systems that perform the specified functions,elements or steps, or combinations of special-purpose hardware andcomputer instructions.

Certain implementations of the disclosed technology are described abovewith reference to user devices may include mobile computing devices.Those skilled in the art recognize that there are several categories ofmobile devices, generally known as portable computing devices that canrun on batteries but are not usually classified as laptops. For example,mobile devices can include, but are not limited to portable computers,tablet PCs, internet tablets, PDAs, ultra-mobile PCs (UMPCs), wearabledevices, and smart phones. Additionally, implementations of thedisclosed technology can be utilized with internet of things (IoT)devices, smart televisions and media devices, appliances, automobiles,toys, and voice command devices, along with peripherals that interfacewith these devices.

In this description, numerous specific details have been set forth. Itis to be understood, however, that implementations of the disclosedtechnology may be practiced without these specific details. In otherinstances, well-known methods, structures and techniques have not beenshown in detail in order not to obscure an understanding of thisdescription. References to “one embodiment,” “an embodiment,” “someembodiments,” “example embodiment,” “various embodiments,” “oneimplementation,” “an implementation,” “example implementation,” “variousimplementations,” “some implementations,” etc., indicate that theimplementation(s) of the disclosed technology so described may include aparticular feature, structure, or characteristic, but not everyimplementation necessarily includes the particular feature, structure,or characteristic. Further, repeated use of the phrase “in oneimplementation” does not necessarily refer to the same implementation,although it may.

Throughout the specification and the claims, the following terms take atleast the meanings explicitly associated herein, unless the contextclearly dictates otherwise. The term “connected” means that onefunction, feature, structure, or characteristic is directly joined to orin communication with another function, feature, structure, orcharacteristic. The term “coupled” means that one function, feature,structure, or characteristic is directly or indirectly joined to or incommunication with another function, feature, structure, orcharacteristic. The term “or” is intended to mean an inclusive “or.”Further, the terms “a,” “an,” and “the” are intended to mean one or moreunless specified otherwise or clear from the context to be directed to asingular form. By “comprising” or “containing” or “including” is meantthat at least the named element, or method step is present in article ormethod, but does not exclude the presence of other elements or methodsteps, even if the other such elements or method steps have the samefunction as what is named.

While certain embodiments of this disclosure have been described inconnection with what is presently considered to be the most practicaland various embodiments, it is to be understood that this disclosure isnot to be limited to the disclosed embodiments, but on the contrary, isintended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangementsincluded within the scope of the appended claims. Although specificterms are employed herein, they are used in a generic and descriptivesense only and not for purposes of limitation.

This written description uses examples to disclose certain embodimentsof the technology and also to enable any person skilled in the art topractice certain embodiments of this technology, including making andusing any apparatuses or systems and performing any incorporatedmethods. The patentable scope of certain embodiments of the technologyis defined in the claims, and may include other examples that occur tothose skilled in the art. Such other examples are intended to be withinthe scope of the claims if they have structural elements that do notdiffer from the literal language of the claims, or if they includeequivalent structural elements with insubstantial differences from theliteral language of the claims.

Exemplary Use Cases

The following exemplary use cases describe examples of a typical userflow pattern. They are intended solely for explanatory purposes and notin limitation. A customer is typically confronted with multiplefinancial decisions on a daily basis, running the gamut from investmentdecisions, decisions about spending money on clothes, entertainment, orgifts for others, or simply a decision about what to buy for lunch. Thecustomer may have certain individualized values (e.g., they really enjoypizza above all other food) and individualized goals (e.g., they want toretire, or be financially positioned to retire, at 60). The system mayhelp the customer maximize the outcomes of these daily financialdecisions, such as, for example, a decision about what to buy for lunch,by maintaining (e.g., via FPM device 120) an ever-evolving financialpolicy that can yield recommendations to the customer about whatfinancial action to take next based on what is currently known about thecustomer's values, current financial state, and future goals. The systemworks by observing the transactions (e.g., via transaction server 114)made by the customer over time and attempting to estimate (e.g., via FPMdevice 120) the value received by the customer in relation to eachtransaction by observing (e.g., via web server 110) an indication of howsatisfied the customer is with the transaction. For example, thecustomer might eat at a particular restaurant and might respond to asurvey indicating that they really enjoyed the meal. The system (e.g.,via web server 110) may obtain survey results that indicate the customerwas highly satisfied with the transaction. The system (e.g., via FPMdevice 120) may then revise the financial policy to create a preferencefor the restaurant in the future based on the high satisfaction that thecustomer experienced from it. The system (e.g., via FPM device 120) mayiteratively revise the financial policy in this way with everytransaction made by the customer, gradually learning which actions yieldbetter results for the customer. The system may also track (e.g., viaFSM device 122) the customer's changing financial state over time, inrelation to the satisfaction derived from various transactions, as thecustomer continues to engage in financial transactions. For example, ina relatively poor state, the customer may derive a high satisfaction outof purchasing fast food because it is inexpensive, but upon entering awealthy state the customer may derive little or no satisfaction fromfast food but instead may derive satisfaction from, for example, freshproduce to meet health-focused goals, despite the fresh produce beingmore expensive than the fast food. As the system learns about thecustomer's values and tracks the customer's financial state, the system(e.g., via FPM device 120) can generate recommendations designed tomaximize the customer's value. For example, the customer may be decidingwhat to buy for lunch, and the system (e.g., via FPM device 120) mayoutput a recommendation that the customer purchase a particular item onthe lunch menu from a particular restaurant.

Another exemplary use case would be if a customer is making a purchase,such as a gift, on behalf of someone else. In this case, the system(e.g., via transaction server 126) may receive data associated with thetransaction, but may also receive (e.g., via web server 110)satisfaction data associated with the recipient of the purchase. Forexample, a customer may buy a video game for a friend, and the system(e.g., via web server 110) may obtain a customer review from the friendindicating that the friend had a high level of satisfaction with thegame. Because this represents a successful gift purchase, the customerhas accomplished their goal of providing a good gift. The system (e.g.,via FPM device 120) may incorporate this satisfaction data into thefinancial policy, which may then provide future recommendations aboutwhat gifts to buy in the future. Similarly, the system (e.g., via webserver 110) may obtain a customer review from the friend relating to apreviously purchased game for the friend, which may have been purchasedby the customer, the friend, or a third party, and incorporate (e.g.,via FPM device 120) this old customer review into the financial policyto provide the current recommendation of which game to buy.

Another exemplary use case would be use by an investment advisor tomanage a customer's investment portfolio. In this case, the system mayattempt to maximize the rewards (e.g., the balances of the variousinvestment accounts of the customer), subject to any constraints thathave been specified by the customer. For example, a customer mayindicate a desire to not have more than a certain percentage of theirholdings in the stock market at any one time. In some cases, suchconstraints may be computed by the system based on what the system knowsabout the customer's profile and preferences. The system would thenactively manage the investments to maximize the rewards. The system(e.g., FPM device 120) would take actions not only based on thecustomer's preferences and financial situation, but also based on whatthe system learns about the financial environment, which may dynamicallychange. For example, the system (e.g., FPM device 120) may learn aboutthe financial environment based on the rewards that have been gainedfrom past actions for other users and the system may pool thatinformation together to provide individualized recommendations based ona particular customer's financial state.

Certain implementations of the disclosed technology are described abovewith reference to block and flow diagrams of systems and methods and/orcomputer program products according to example implementations of thedisclosed technology. It will be understood that one or more blocks ofthe block diagrams and flow diagrams, and combinations of blocks in theblock diagrams and flow diagrams, respectively, can be implemented bycomputer-executable program instructions. Likewise, some blocks of theblock diagrams and flow diagrams may not necessarily need to beperformed in the order presented, may be repeated, or may notnecessarily need to be performed at all, according to someimplementations of the disclosed technology.

These computer-executable program instructions may be loaded onto ageneral-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a processor, orother programmable data processing apparatus to produce a particularmachine, such that the instructions that execute on the computer,processor, or other programmable data processing apparatus create meansfor implementing one or more functions specified in the flow diagramblock or blocks. These computer program instructions may also be storedin a computer-readable memory that can direct a computer or otherprogrammable data processing apparatus to function in a particularmanner, such that the instructions stored in the computer-readablememory produce an article of manufacture including instruction meansthat implement one or more functions specified in the flow diagram blockor blocks. As an example, implementations of the disclosed technologymay provide for a computer program product, including a computer-usablemedium having a computer-readable program code or program instructionsembodied therein, said computer-readable program code adapted to beexecuted to implement one or more functions specified in the flowdiagram block or blocks. Likewise, the computer program instructions maybe loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processingapparatus to cause a series of operational elements or steps to beperformed on the computer or other programmable apparatus to produce acomputer-implemented process such that the instructions that execute onthe computer or other programmable apparatus provide elements or stepsfor implementing the functions specified in the flow diagram block orblocks.

As used herein, unless otherwise specified the use of the ordinaladjectives “first,” “second,” “third,” etc., to describe a commonobject, merely indicate that different instances of like objects arebeing referred to, and are not intended to imply that the objects sodescribed must be in a given sequence, either temporally, spatially, inranking, or in any other manner.

1. A system for providing customized financial advice, comprising: oneor more processors; and a memory in communication with the one or moreprocessors and storing instructions that, when executed by the one ormore processors, are configured to cause the system to: receiveenvironmental data representative of an environment comprising aplurality of financial states, the plurality of financial statescomprising a first financial state and a second financial state, thefirst financial state initially corresponding with a customer financialstate associated with a customer; receive financial policy datarepresenting a financial policy for determining one or more actions froma plurality of actions to take in order to maximize a cumulative rewardassociated with a customer, each of the plurality of actions beingassociated with one or more financial decisions; receive firsttransaction data for a first transaction associated with the customer;receive first audio data indicative of a first spoken satisfactioncommunication from the customer, the first spoken satisfactioncommunication indicative of a first satisfaction of the customerregarding the first transaction; analyze the first audio data todetermine a first tone, a first pitch, and a first rate of speechassociated with the first audio data; determine first satisfaction databased on the first tone, the first pitch, and the first rate of speech;update, based on the first transaction data, the customer financialstate to correspond with the second financial state of the plurality offinancial states; update the financial policy based on the firsttransaction data; receive second transaction data for a secondtransaction associated with the customer, the second transaction beingassociated with a purchase, investment, or other transaction differentfrom a purchase, investment, or other transaction associated with thefirst transaction data; receive second audio data indicative of a secondspoken satisfaction communication from the customer, the second spokensatisfaction communication indicative of a second satisfaction of thecustomer regarding the second transaction; analyze the second audio datato determine a second tone, a second pitch, and a second rate of speechassociated with the second audio data; and determine second satisfactiondata based on the second tone, the second pitch, and the second rate ofspeech; update, based on the second transaction data, the customerfinancial state to correspond with a third financial state of theplurality of financial states; update the financial policy based on thesecond transaction data and the second satisfaction data; update arelative customer satisfaction policy based on the first satisfactiondata and the second satisfaction data; determine a recommended actionout of the plurality of actions based on the updated financial policy,the updated relative customer satisfaction policy, and the updatedcustomer financial state; and output, based on the recommended action,recommendation data for display by a user device associated with thecustomer.
 2. (canceled)
 3. (canceled)
 4. The system of claim 1, whereinthe first satisfaction data is associated with a recipient of a good orservice purchased by the customer.
 5. The system of claim 1, wherein oneor more of the financial policy and the relative customer satisfactionpolicy is iteratively updated using reinforcement learning techniques inresponse receiving transaction data associated with a plurality oftransactions.
 6. The system of claim 1, wherein updating the relativecustomer satisfaction policy comprises: determining a first reward basedon the first satisfaction data; and determining whether the first rewardincreases or decreases the cumulative reward associated with thecustomer.
 7. The system of claim 6, wherein determining the first rewardcomprises applying a set of rules associated with the financial policyto the second financial state and the first satisfaction data.
 8. Thesystem of claim 6, wherein the cumulative reward represents one or moreof a savings goal, a passive income goal, a debt reduction goal, and ahappiness goal.
 9. A method of providing customized financial advicecomprising: receiving environmental data representative of anenvironment comprising a plurality of financial states, the plurality offinancial states comprising a first financial state and a secondfinancial state, the first financial state initially corresponding witha customer financial state associated with a customer; receivingfinancial policy data representing a financial policy for determiningone or more actions from a plurality of actions to take in order tomaximize a cumulative reward associated with a customer, each of theplurality of actions being associated with one or more financialdecisions; receiving first transaction data for a first transactionassociated with the customer; receiving first audio data indicative of afirst spoken satisfaction communication from the customer, the firstspoken satisfaction communication indicative of a first satisfaction ofthe customer regarding the first transaction; analyzing the first audiodata to determine a first tone, a first pitch, and a first rate ofspeech associated with the first audio data; and determining firstsatisfaction data based on the first tone, the first pitch, and thefirst rate of speech; updating, based on the first transaction data, thecustomer financial state to correspond with the second financial stateof the plurality of financial states; updating, the financial policybased on the first transaction data; receiving second transaction datafor a second transaction associated with the customer, the secondtransaction being associated with a purchase, investment, or otherfinancial transaction different from a purchase, investment, or othertransaction associated with the first transaction data; receiving secondaudio data indicative of a second spoken satisfaction communication fromthe customer, the second spoken satisfaction communication indicative ofa second satisfaction of the customer regarding the second transaction;analyzing the second audio data to determine a second tone, a secondpitch, and a second rate of speech associated with the second audiodata; and determining second satisfaction data based on the second tone,the second pitch, and the second rate of speech; updating, based on thesecond transaction data, the customer financial state to correspond witha third financial state of the plurality of financial states; updatingthe financial policy based on the second transaction data and the secondsatisfaction data; updating a relative customer satisfaction policybased on the first satisfaction data and the second satisfaction data;determining a recommended action out of the plurality of actions basedon the updated financial policy, the updated relative customersatisfaction policy, and the updated customer financial state; andoutputting, based on the recommended action, recommendation data fordisplay by a user device associated with the customer.
 10. (canceled)11. (canceled)
 12. The method of claim 9, wherein the first satisfactiondata is associated with a recipient of a good or service purchased bythe customer.
 13. The method of claim 9, wherein updating the relativecustomer satisfaction policy comprises: determining a first reward basedon the first satisfaction data; and determining whether the first rewardincreases or decreases the cumulative reward associated with thecustomer.
 14. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storinginstructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause asystem to: receive environmental data representative of an environmentcomprising a plurality of financial states, the plurality of financialstates comprising a first financial state and a second financial state,the first financial state initially corresponding with a customerfinancial state associated with a customer; receive financial policydata representing a financial policy for determining one or more actionsfrom a plurality of actions to take in order to maximize a cumulativereward associated with a customer, each of the plurality of actionsbeing associated with one or more financial decisions; receive firsttransaction data for a first transaction associated with the customer;receive first audio data indicative of a first spoken satisfactioncommunication from the customer, the first spoken satisfactioncommunication indicative of a first satisfaction of the customerregarding the first transaction; analyze the first audio data todetermine a first tone, a first pitch, and a first rate of speechassociated with the first audio data; and determine first satisfactiondata based on the first tone, the first pitch, and the first rate ofspeech; update, based on the first transaction data, the customerfinancial state to correspond with the second financial state of theplurality of financial states; update the financial policy based on thefirst transaction data; receive second transaction data for a secondtransaction associated with the customer, the second transaction beingassociated with a purchase, investment, or other transaction differentfrom a purchase, investment, or other transaction associated with thefirst transaction data; receive second audio data indicative of a secondspoken satisfaction communication from the customer, the second spokensatisfaction communication indicative of a second satisfaction of thecustomer regarding the second transaction; analyze the second audio datato determine a second tone, a second pitch, and a second rate of speechassociated with the second audio data; and determine second satisfactiondata based on the second tone, the second pitch, and the second rate ofspeech; update, based on the second transaction data, the customerfinancial state to correspond with a third financial state of theplurality of financial states; update the financial policy based on thesecond transaction data and the second satisfaction data; update arelative customer satisfaction policy based on the first satisfactiondata and the second satisfaction data; determine a recommended actionout of the plurality of actions based on the updated financial policy,the updated relative customer satisfaction policy, and the updatedcustomer financial state; and output, based on the recommended action,recommendation data for display by a user device associated with thecustomer.
 15. (canceled)
 16. (canceled)
 17. The non-transitorycomputer-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the first satisfactiondata is associated with a recipient of a good or service purchased bythe customer.
 18. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim14, wherein updating the relative customer satisfaction policycomprises: determining a first reward based on the first satisfactiondata; and determining whether the first reward increases or decreasesthe cumulative reward associated with the customer.
 19. Thenon-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein determiningthe first reward comprises applying a set of rules associated with thefinancial policy to the second financial state and the firstsatisfaction data.
 20. The non-transitory computer-readable medium ofclaim 18, wherein the cumulative reward represents one or more of asavings goal, a passive income goal, a debt reduction goal, and ahappiness goal.
 21. The system of claim 1, wherein the instructions,when executed by the one or more processors, are configured to furthercause the system to: receive third transaction data for a thirdtransaction associated with the customer, the third transaction beingassociated with a purchase, investment, or other transaction the same asor similar to the purchase, investment, or other transaction associatedwith the first transaction data; receive, via an electronic interface,third satisfaction data for the third transaction, the electronicinterface being between the customer and the system for providingcustomized financial advice and the third satisfaction data beingderived from a detection of a facial expression or body language from athird image; update, based on the third transaction data, the customerfinancial state to correspond with a fourth financial state of theplurality of financial states; update the financial policy based on thethird transaction data; and update the relative customer satisfactionpolicy based on the third satisfaction data.
 22. The method of claim 9further comprising: receiving third transaction data for a thirdtransaction associated with the customer, the third transaction beingassociated with a purchase, investment, or other transaction the same asor similar to the purchase, investment, or other transaction associatedwith the first transaction data; receiving, via an electronic interface,third satisfaction data for the third transaction, the electronicinterface being between the customer and the system for providingcustomized financial advice and the third satisfaction data beingderived from a detection of a facial expression or body language from athird image; updating, based on the third transaction data, the customerfinancial state to correspond with a fourth financial state of theplurality of financial states; updating the financial policy based onthe third transaction data; and updating the relative customersatisfaction policy based on the third satisfaction data.
 23. Thenon-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 18 storing additionalinstructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause asystem to: determine that the second transaction benefits a third party,wherein the second image corresponds to the third party and the secondvoice recording corresponds to the third party.
 24. The system of claim1, wherein the first satisfaction data is derived from a detection of afacial expression or body language from a first image associated withthe first transaction and the second satisfaction data is derived from adetection of a facial expression or body language from a second imageassociated with the second transaction.
 25. The method of claim 9,wherein the first satisfaction data is derived from a detection of afacial expression or body language from a first image associated withthe first transaction and the second satisfaction data is derived from adetection of a facial expression or body language from a second imageassociated with the second transaction.
 26. The non-transitorycomputer-readable medium of claim 11, wherein the first satisfactiondata is derived from a detection of a facial expression or body languagefrom a first image associated with the first transaction and the secondsatisfaction data is derived from a detection of a facial expression orbody language from a second image associated with the secondtransaction.